This is just a fic that popped into my head at two in the morning. The music is not mine and neither is Sanctuary. Enjoy!
Spoilers for Season four: Tempus, the Depths, and Sanctuary for None parts one and two.
This is for Arones, she is a wonderful help.
Will was walking the corridors of the residential area, moving along the new hallways, his feet shuffled over the dark woods. The walls had various paintings that were both new and old, even some portraits hung along the walls as well as several original Nene Thomas pieces. The halls were painted lighter colors; soft blues and light greens, not the normal white that one would find. He rounded a corner and heard music. He figured Magnus was listening to it while reading as it was a slow Saturday morning and it wasn't an odd thing for her to do. He continued walking, turning a corner and was surprised to find her bedroom door wide open. In said bedroom was none other than the woman herself sitting in a chair with her eyes closed with the fingers of her right hand moving up and down the neck of a cello. Her left arm was drawing the bow across the strings bringing forth beautiful notes from the black colored instrument resting between her parted legs.
He watched as she fingered the notes with practiced movements and as the tempo picked up and the piece became more energetic; he watched her sway, lost in the flow and ebb. She was a sight to behold: he had seen her in jeans and a button up blouse with flats before, but her current attire was composed of a black unisex t-shirt that said 'Old City High School Orchestra and Band Parent' on it and a pair of black culottes that stopped just below her knees, and her feet were bare, moving to the beat of the music. He didn't recognize the piece but he took the time, having never been in her room here before, to look around. His eyes strayed over a grand piano, a four poster king size bed, a desk, and an entire wall of windows with floor to ceiling curtains that were deep red, matching the curtains on her bed. Beside her bed, on a table rested a picture of Helen holding a newborn baby smiling tiredly and brightly at the camera, Will deduced that this was from the day Ashley had been born, Helen's hair was still plastered to her face in the picture.
Helen paused in her music keeping her eyes closed. She knew he was watching her, and she started a new piece: one she knew he would recognize. She opened her eyes and smiled at him lazily drawing the bow along the strings, gliding it gently, no pressure was really needed when playing such a flowing piece.
Helen loved her music, making the notes of a piece come to life, whether by herself or with other people. She let her eyes slip closed again and began to hum soft enough to not being heard over the instrument poised between her legs. Will walked closer and listened to a cello part from Secrets by One Republic; he liked that song, it wasn't his usual genre, but everyone had heard it at some point. He leaned against her door jamb and rested his head on it, letting his eyes fall shut. He allowed the music to wash over him, to blanket him. He listened to the rest of the song like that and when he heard the last note, he opened his lids to find her blue gaze staring at him intently.
She rested the cello in its stand and put the bow where it belonged beside it. She stood and stretched, motioning with a hand for Will to fully enter her sanctuary. They didn't use words. They didn't need them.
Will was enjoying her musical ability, no doubt learned over years and years of living. He had noted that with the cello, she was comfortable and had an air around her that oozed contentment. He wished that she could be like that all the time. He had figured she played some instrument given her upbringing and age. He had never thought to ask; it had seemed so trivial before. He had asked for no secrets, but he didn't have to know absolutely everything about her. The piano was something he was looking forward to, hearing her bring forth the language of the notes in patterns that could soothe or anger. He stepped into her room and was greeted with a smile as she placed a hand on his arm.
She pulled him to sit at the row of keys with her. He got situated and then she sat beside him, lining up with 'middle c' so that she could finger the keys properly. The deep tones caressed the room and the hallway as she ran her fingers along the keys. Again Will was lost in the beauty of her and the music. She looked so relaxed and happy; he liked to see her this way. He was content to just watch and listen to the notes rolling off the vibrating strings. She played for a long time, one piece to another only stopping long enough to let the last note barely die before picking up again. So they sat there, her moving her fingers, creating wonderful soothing sounds, and him watching in awe. Helen Magnus was an enigma, a puzzle. Will liked puzzles, especially when they were his mentor, his 'partner,' as he had stated after they had returned from the caves.
They had completely moved everything to the underground area, every Sanctuary in the world now housed in the massive city. There was really no other word for it, and when Will had seen it he had been stunned. Still his thoughts came back to the woman playing the grand next to him. He loved her as a friend, a family member and something a little more perhaps. He didn't know how she felt, but he wanted to find out.
It was another two hours before she really stopped playing; it had been all she had really done in her seclusion: playing endlessly to pass the time, exercising and eating, planning, building this beautiful place. That had been her life for one hundred and thirteen years in the time loop. "Does playing help you clear your mind?" Will's voice sounded next to her. She turned to look at him and smiled.
"It helps me think and relax. It's something I enjoy doing in my spare time." Helen confessed, leaning her head on his shoulder and smiling lightly. She liked the contact with Will; he didn't make it awkward when she touched him, when she broke down in front of him, if she did. She could be herself around him, even if he was with Abby (which only made her a little jealous though she was loathe to admit it). Helen Magnus was mostly human and therefore still needed that contact occasionally.
She was believed dead to the world. The governments and Addison certainly thought so, and she was fine with that, her work could continue now with minimal interference. They all lived underground now, in New Praxis, as her not so little city had been dubbed. Praxians called her the Queen, the Leader. She didn't care for the title and had voiced as much when she had announced the success of her plan, but no one had listened. She still wasn't normal to them, they had placed her on a pedestal and she was stuck there.
Will smiled and nodded, easily following her train of silent thoughts. "Lets you feel normal, now that you are the leader: Queen Magnus in all her glory." He made a grand gesture around her large master bedroom and smiled brightly. Helen laughed and nodded.
"I find that being considered 'royalty' as I have heard many refer to me as does not fit when I am a resident here, the boss of something larger than most normals can comprehend. Why do they insist that I be the Queen, a leader, royalty?" She looked at him for an answer. He shrugged and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, noticing how she still hadn't moved her head from its place on her shoulder.
Will thought for a time: people needed a structure, and many liked to have a leader. Helen made the perfect choice: experience, years, ability to handle the pressures. This had been her plan, executed to near perfection; therefore she was placed on a high pedestal. "People need a person to lead them; the Praxians were used to a leader, a group of people leading them it's their way. The Senate was a constant force for them. They are right to want a leader and I've heard many of the residents from the surface begin to acknowledge you that way, 'Queen Helen Victoria Magnus' has been a hot topic of discussion in the streets and the markets. I hear it everywhere I go. You are a hero." He finished, squeezing her shoulders tighter. She pulled out of the embrace and wrinkled her nose.
"Why did they have to throw my middle name in there?" she huffed. Helen didn't really like her middle name. Will laughed and kissed her temple in a friendly manner, just a brush of his lips before he released her from his hug. She smiled and sat up straight again.
"I don't even know how they know your middle name, but I like it." He smiled. She giggled and stood holding out her hand. This would be a very challenging time for everyone. He grabbed her hand and followed her through the halls to the kitchen for some lunch.
They fixed their meal in companionable silence and ate with a comment here or there. It was nearly two in the afternoon when he suggested that they watch a movie and have some popcorn to relax. Helen smiled and had said she'd like that very much. This was the beginning of something that both could live with. They would take on anything and everything together. They fit together like a symphony and for that, they were both grateful. To be in harmony with one another was a wonderful feeling.